


life is short, just do it?

by Anonymous



Category: TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Attempt at Humor, Comedy, Fluff, M/M, but make it unfunny, gay panic taehyun cause why not, no romance only clownery, side hueningkai/beomgyu, this fic is just beomkai clowning tyun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:40:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27584224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Taehyun has a tiny little crush (spoiler: it's a massive crush) on this librarian he knows, simple.(Except it is actually not simple...?)
Relationships: Choi Soobin/Kang Taehyun
Comments: 2
Kudos: 76
Collections: Baby Bunny Fest





	life is short, just do it?

It’s sunny outside, weather pleasant enough despite being almost December.

Taehyun walks with a steady pace, resisting the urge to hop in excitement, hand clutching his leather bag when he gets to his destination.

The familiar wooden door opens easily, the smell of books greeting him.

He walks to his usual table near the window, just a few meters away from the counter.

Normally he would opt for a more reserved spot, away from any noise to better concentrate but lately, he’s making exceptions.

His eyes scan the counter where the staff members are working, disappointed when he doesn’t spot who he’s been looking for. With a heavy sigh, he opens his bag, ready to actually revise his biology notes when he hears a -by now- familiar voice, eyes readily looking around until he identifies a mop of black hair greeting the staff.

It’s him. The black-haired librarian with a blinding eye smile and soft voice.

Unconsciously in a better mood now, he fits his hand inside his bag to fish out his books and laptop, organizing them neatly on the desk. 

He absent-mindedly opens a file before setting his eyes on the screen, reading a few paragraphs without absorbing any of the information.

Damn, he already knows he’s not going to have anything done today as well.

His gaze drifts to his right, where the black-haired librarian sits while sorting some paper from a big pile. The guy has his eyes down, mouth set in a pout, a characteristic he has whenever he’s concentrating, as Taehyun found out from weeks of observing him from afar.

A Taehyun from some weeks ago would have laughed at himself. He didn’t believe in first sight infatuations, always found silly to crush on someone you didn’t even know. 

Little did he know what would’ve happened the day he opted to visit this library when the one near his home closed down for momentary manutention. 

That day was quite unmemorable. He chose a book he wanted to bring home and proceeded to bring it to the counter to register it. He was greeted by a warm smile and an uncharacteristically low yet soft voice.

“Hello, do you wish to borrow this book?” 

It may have been a banal exchange, but this was a turning point for 18-year-old Taehyun, who just stared at the stranger, eyes wide and jaw clenched.

“Uhm… excuse me? Is something wrong?” 

This snapped Taehyun back to reality, voice miraculously firm when he finally answers, “Yes, please.”

° ° ° °

“And that’s it? Nothing else?”

It’s too early for Beomgyu’s disapproving voice to ring annoyingly at a coffee deprived Taehyun.

“I mean, you’ve been daydreaming about cute librarian boy for weeks. Why don’t you just ask for his number?”

Taehyun sighs. “It’s not that easy and, also, isn’t it creepy to bother someone who’s just working there?”

Beomgyu snorts, quickly dodging Taehyun’s attempt to strangle him. “Knowing you, you’re probably always staring at him with those big ass eyes of yours, _that_ is creepy. You will scare him away before you even get to know his name.”

He raises one eyebrow. “I’ve never had to ask someone out, so I truly have no idea how to approach him.”

Beomgyu grimaces in disgust. “Ew, watch how you speak Mr. Popular, someone may want to plan murder if they heard you.”

“Hyung, you get confessed all the time as well.”

“With all the modesty, sure I am, I don’t have a clean record of double-digit rejections though.”

Indeed, as opposed to the image people have of him, Taehyun is quite inexperienced in dating. He supposes he’s somehow popular with his peers, difficult to not notice when he’s accumulated a pile of love letters -and rejections- during high school. He just really never cared about dating before.

  
  


Once they step in the cafeteria, Beomgyu says, while looking at the ordination screen, “Just stop being a chicken, worst case he rejects you, you go cry your eyes out for a week or two and disappear from that library forever, easy.”

Taehyun looks at him sideways, “Brave words for someone who took 2 weeks just to answer Huening’s confession.”

The other’s eyes widen, a glimpse of blush flashes before he turns around rapidly, singsonging, “What did you say, can’t hear you~”

° ° ° °  
  


Later that day, he’s strolling home with Hueningkai, caramel macchiato in a hand as they blabber about anything and nothing, when the latter voices out, “Hey, but do you know whether library boy is taken or not?”

Taehyun freezes. Right. He didn’t think of that. Is he an idio-

“You didn’t think of that? Are you an idiot?” Hueningkai precedes him, accompanied by his unmissable loud cackle, _of course_. 

He continues, “Taehyun-ah, I really think you should try as soon as possible, he may be reluctant but you never know if you don’t try!”

Taehyun nods. “You’re right, I should have an attempt at least.”

Hueningkai beams with a wide smile, pulling on Taehyun’s sleeve. “We should go, like, now! Take me there, I will be your emotional support!”

° ° °  
  


Fast forward half an hour later, they’re now inside the library.

“So, who’s the lucky guy who caught your frozen heart?” Hueningkai says, eyebrows winking suggestively. 

Taehyun ignores the jab, gaze wandering left and right but the tall librarian is nowhere to be seen. “I don’t see him, maybe he’s not working today.”

“Huh, you come here basically every day but don’t know dream boy’s shift days?”

He deadpans, “I’d like to tell you that I’m not the stalker you think I am.”

Hueningkai turns his head, looking around as if he could actually spot a person whom he has never seen the face of, and the only physical traits he’s aware of are “tall and black-haired”. And this description fits a _lot_ of people, perks of living in a country as homogenous as South Korea.

They spend a good half hour waiting before giving up, the _capture dream boy mission_ will have to wait, for now.

Hueningkai is not satisfied just going home empty-handed though. He needs to fill his daily quota of leisure so he asks, with a tilt of aegyo, “Well, let’s get cake then?”

  
  


° ° ° 

They enter a café that’s quite -as Beomgyu would say- _trendy_ , the soft light reflecting on wooden tables and soft couches creating quite a cozy environment and the relatively affordable prices making it appealable to broke students like themselves.

They’re waiting for their slice of Saint Honoré and strawberry tart when Taehyun suddenly googles out his already enormous eyes.

He whispers, lowering his head, “Ning, at your left, near the window, it’s him.”

Hueningkai looks back confusedly. Nonetheless, he searches his left until he spots a black tall black-haired man. 

He had to restrain his signature high pitch scream, granting himself a low, barely contained, chuckle.

“Guess I was meant to meet your dream boy today.”

“Is this about you or me,” Taehyun retorts, then adds, after observing the other’s table, ”He’s probably waiting for someone?”

“Oh, talking about that-”

A vibrant voice interrupts him, Beomgyu’s figure appearing from behind, sitting right beside Hueningkai’s side, “Yaho! I’m here for the cake!”

“Ning, I thought you were here as moral support, not to trick me into third-wheeling today,” Taehyun says pointedly.

Beomgyu laughs, and just before he leaves to order as well, he says, “I would say the more the merrier. You’ve got an additional brain here to help you out. So, who’s the lucky man?”

The lucky man in question is now munching on pastries, Taehyun notes that his mouths pout when chewing, lips creating the image of a bunny. Nevermind the fact he’s currently on his 3rd slice of cake, it’s all infuriatingly adorable, if you ask Taehyun.

His view is suddenly covered by the waiter, delivering their order.

When his vision is clear again, he sees a man sitting at the librarian’s table, the electric pink hair instantly catching his eyes. He’s very good looking, and they seem intimate and comfortable with each other.

Hueningkai whispers, “Huh, Taehyun-ah, you seem to have a rival there-”

Predictably, the latter receives a jab in the stomach. He whines in answer, “Ouchie, I was just kidding… wait, they're feeding each other now.”

Indeed the pink-haired man was spooning cake to the librarian, the scene could have well been from a clichéd romance drama, where the leads are in their honeymoon phase relationship and Taehyun just the lame side character pining over a man he doesn't even know the name of. 

He doesn't have the time to dwell further that Beomgyu's already back with a tray full of pastries.

"Woa, it would seem someone died by your glum face.”

Hueningkai lowers his voice and says, cautiously, “Emotionally yes, someone got murdered here.”

Beomgyu squints his eyes in the direction Hueningkai points at. “Wait, isn’t that Yeonjun-hyung?” 

“You know him? That’s the guy who murdered Taehyun-ah’s heart just now.”

“That’s my flatmate. Let me just ask them something.”

If Hueningkai and Taehyun are more of a discreet type, Beomgyu surely over-compensates with outgoingness as he’s already in front of the _supposedly_ couple’s table before the younger can even process his words and stop him.

For a brief moment, Taehyun’s eyes meet the librarian’s ones, the latter instantly looking away.

 _Oh,_ Taehyun can almost hear the sound of his heart cracking cause, what did Beomgyu tell them? _He must think I’m an asshole who’s trying to flirt with someone who’s already taken, maybe disappearing doesn’t sound so bad after all-_

To his surprise though, Beomgyu comes back with a shit-eating grin. 

“I’ve just asked, Yeonjun-hyung is just a friend. Your dream boy is single and just waiting to be taken~”

Taehyun feels such relief he may as well melt in a rejoicing puddle. 

He doesn't show it on his face though, he prides on his poker face, and strikes to ask the sharper question.

“Wait. Did you really just ask _that_ to someone you’ve met for the first time?”

Beomgyu has no second thoughts when he says, “Yup, and I expect you to pay for my meal tomorrow in return.”

  
  


° ° °

Today is the day.

The day Taehyun either gets _the_ date in his 18 years of single life; or the day he runs to disappear in a foreign country, never to be seen again.

Switzerland sounds good, in that case.

The plan is simple, return this book, strike a normal conversation to break the ice, ask for a book recommendation and be(or pretend, if needed) to be entranced by whatever title the guy suggests. Taehyun is usually confident in his speech skills, he should be able to do this, right?

  
  


It has been a hot hour and, spoiler, he didn’t. Yet.

Theorizing a plan of action is indeed much easier than actually executing it, he recognizes.

It’s when he sees the librarian preparing his backpack, presumably to end his work shift, that he knows he can’t delay this anymore, he has to act now.

Time seems to be stretching slow as a few meters have never felt so long when he walks to the counter, heart palpitating so fast he can almost hear the sound of it.

Until he’s in front of the guy. His accurately premade plan is thrown out of the window once he’s actually facing the librarian, brain completely fried. _What was he supposed to do again?_ He’s too busy observing how long the guy’s lashes were from this distance, it should be illegal to look this good up close.

“Hi, excuse me? Do you need anything?”

_Oh, his voice sounds so soft-_

That’s when Taehyun snaps back to earth, suddenly aware of the fact he’s been frowning the whole time and the librarian is looking at him -rightfully- puzzled.

_Great start, Taehyunie._

Good thing Hueningkai wasn’t there or he would never let him live in peace.

Taehyun steadies his voice, “I’d like to return this book.”

The librarian smiles(did Taehyun just see a flash of _dimples_?) and proceeds to register the book’s name in their database.

“All right. Do you need anything else?”

“Actually, I quite enjoyed this title. Do you have any recommendations?”

The librarian seems to be taken aback, his voice is apologetic though. “I’m sorry, I’m actually at my shift’s end. You can ask my colleague over there though, she will be more than happy to assist you!”

Uh oh, this was not planned.

Taehyun doesn’t know if it’s a surge of bravery or just panic acting, the words coming out faster than his thought when he says, “Actually, I’m sorry. I’ve been frequenting this library for a while and this may sound silly but, I’d really like to get to know you-”

The librarian stares at him blankly, the words seeping through him until he, to Taehyun’s surprise, erupts in giggles.

“So that’s why!” He chortles, before continuing, barely containing his laugher, “Sorry, I’m laughing at you. I’ve actually noticed you staring at me several times, your gaze is quite intense sometimes you know?”

Taehyun has his mouth open, empty mind trying to scramble for an answer before the librarian continues, “This attempt was quite bumbling, in a cute way. I’m up for a coffee right now, what do you say?”

“I don’t like coffee.”

Taehyun wants to facepalm himself on a rock hard surface cause, what the hell is he saying. His mouth filter is apparently broken when his brain is fuzzling with panic and his eyes busy lingering at the dimples that occasionally appear on the librarian’s cheeks.

Much to his surprise, the librarian chuckles once again, amused. “I actually don’t like coffee that much either. I’m not supposed to be the one doing the talking here though?” he teases.

How did this sad joke of an attempt actually work? Taehyun doesn’t know, but he guesses that it’s not important right now. “I know a café that sells delicious cakes.”

° ° °

Later, they sit cozily in front of some nice slices of cake talking about the most trivial matters. Taehyun learns that the librarian’s name is Soobin and he’s a psychology major who works part-time to afford take-out food for every night meal he has(spelled: he doesn’t cook very much).

Between morsels of food, Soobin says, “To tell the truth, I was a bit intimidated by you at first. You looked like you had a grudge against me or something,” the tone is playful, with no hints of malice, “I’m glad I could see past that though, you’re actually so cute.”

Contrary to the _panicking gay_ _image_ Taehyun must have given before, he feels a surge of bravado when he replies, “Same goes for you, you look like a bunny. So cute.”

What Taehyun doesn’t expect is a full-blown pink dusting Soobin’s face, reaching even the tips of his ears as he tries to hide his face behind his hand. 

What started out as a silly crush may just have become a meteor crashing full speed, cause his feelings only seem to intensify with each fleeting gaze they share, each minuscule detail he can seize about this person who he’s known for actually so little time. 

Taehyun doesn’t like gambles, but maybe, just for this time, he’s willing to bet. 

**Author's Note:**

> extra scene: the beomkai+yeonjun trio is just sitting some tables away to make sure the couple is doing okey dokey (and, maybe, collecting some material to clown them in future :^
> 
> -  
> hello there, thank you for reaching the end!  
> this entire fic is silly and dumb and so i am, i'm unfunny af but i hope you enjoyed some of the maknae line's banter haha  
> special thanks [redacted] gc cause even a few words rly can give so much motivation T_T
> 
> [ twt](https://twitter.com/ririririlelele)


End file.
